Arts Consulting Group Seeking New CEO for Cape Arts & Entertainment
September 18, 2017 – Theatrical, film and music organizations have been turning to executive search firms in recent months to find new leaders. Arts Consulting Group (ACG) was recently tapped by Cape Arts & Entertainment (CA&E) to recruit its new president and CEO. ACG president Bruce D. Thibodeau is leading the search.
CA&E is seeking an experienced, entrepreneurial visionary and a team leader who will empower and work with the board, said the search firm. The individual is expected to marshal the funds, expertise and influence to lead, create cohesion and develop a high-performing culture within the organization, which has grown steadily in revenue and personnel over the past 10 years.
The incoming executive is also expected to partner with those working to build the Oceanside Performing Arts Center, a future performance hall. Leading a senior team of 18 professional staff members across the organization, the CEO should exhibit special strengths in management, fundraising, marketing, team building, and communication, said the search firm. The ideal candidate would have a strong work ethic, a consensus-building can-do attitude, and a passion for music, education and the arts.
The Right Traits
The CEO should also be an inspirational leader and experienced team builder, said the Arts Consulting Group. The individual will be committed to developing a culture of customer service and will value frequent interactions with a diverse range of community stakeholders and potential partners. The person must be adaptable to frequent change and comfortable juggling multiple projects and priorities within a demanding environment.
Experience in financial management, complex organizational structures and project management is also required. A background in fundraising, planning, consensus leadership, and team building is also essential. This individual must have a minimum of seven to 10 years of relevant business experience and a bachelor’s degree. A master’s degree is preferred.
Successful candidates will demonstrate a passion for the importance of music, the arts, and education and a willingness to invest in the community, said the recruitment firm. The incoming president and CEO will be expected to live on Cape Cod and be a visible presence in the community.
Cape Arts & Entertainment is the largest arts non-profit on Cape Cod and the parent organization of both the Cape Symphony and the Cape Conservatory, having merged these two organizations in 2010. Founded in 1961, the Cape Symphony has an annual audience of more than 27,000.
Turning to Executive Search Firms
Arts Consulting Group provides interim management, executive search, revenue enhancement consulting, facilities & program planning, and organizational development services for the arts and culture industry. It has identified senior-level leaders for the Long Beach Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Chicago Opera, Stockton Symphony Association and Portland Baroque Orchestra, among others. The firm has offices in Boston, Calgary, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Halifax, Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Portland, San Francisco, Tampa, Toronto and Washington, D.C.
Dr. Thibodeau founded ACG in 1997 and has been part of numerous projects in all practice areas to grow institutional sustainability, advance the arts and culture sector, and enhance communities served by the industry. He has guided hundreds of non-profit, university and government clients in achieving effective leadership transitions, planning cultural facilities, increasing revenues, developing dynamic institutional brands and messages, crafting strategic plans and business models, and revitalizing board governance practices.
Turning to Executive Search Firms
Other performing arts organizations have also been turning to executive search firms to find new leaders. Here’s a look at a few from the Hunt Scanlon Media archives:
AlbertHall&Associates recruited David Ivers as the artistic director of the Arizona Theatre Company (ATC). Mr. Ivers served as artistic director at the Utah Shakespeare Festival for seven years. He helped lead a $40 million facilities expansion that included two new theatres, a new rehearsal hall, costume shop and administrative offices.
Isaacson, Miller has placed Damian Woetzel as the seventh president of The Juilliard School. For the last 32 years, Joseph Polisi has served as the organization’s president. Isaacson, Miller chairman John Isaacson led the search with vice president Sheryl Ash and associates Katie Rockman and Cortney Tunis.
Schall Executive Search recruited Mark Nerenhausen as president and CEO of the Hennepin Theatre Trust. Hennepin Theatre Trust is a non-profit organization that creates positive change through the arts by bringing together people, businesses and organizations in WeDo, the West Downtown Minneapolis Cultural District.
Stamford, CT-based executive search firm Management Consultants for the Arts was selected by Music of the Baroque (MOB) in Chicago to lead its search for a new executive director. Partner David Mallette and managing director Louise Kane are leading the assignment. MOB is a modern instrument chamber orchestra.
Howe-Lewis International was recently chosen by the Sundance Institute to lead its search for a new chief advancement officer. Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, the Sundance seeks to discover, support, and inspire independent film and theatre artists from the U.S. and around the world, and to introduce audiences to their new work.
Korn Ferry placed Michael Murphy as president of Shea’s Performing Arts Center. Shea’s Performing Arts Center is a theater for touring Broadway musicals and special events in Buffalo, NY. Originally called Shea’s Buffalo, it was opened in 1926 to show silent movies and boasts one of the few theater organs in the U.S. that is still in operation in the theater for which it was designed.
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor; and Will Schatz, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
